Hedge fund and Analysts are now using Satellite, Geo Imaging to trend parking lots of large box retailers where the observe number of cars and trend quarterly earnings, consumer activity

I think it was a very cool idea

now we can predict where and when the consumers are going, next thing we can predict

What kind of cars go to Costco, -Macys, Walmart, Best Buy etc and correlate economic demographic to stores and create patterns of usage and predict earnings.

Google earth after all not seems to be bad idea now

Historically there have been many methods

Number of Trailer trucks in I81 or other interstate corridors which showed movement of goods

this just takes to a new level

Before you know there might be drone satellites surveying expensive, affluent high income earning ZIP CODES , thanks to Loudoun,Fairfax, Montgomery,Prince Williams,Howard we can expect many more drone satellites trying to analyze and sell services or study behavior for consumer activity.